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The 1940 National Registration File

Are you looking for a Canadian ancestor or someone who was living in Canada during the Second World War? The National Registration was a result of the National Resources Mobilization Act, 1940, which enabled the government to identify military and labour resources that could be mobilized for the war effort.

Since most sources for that time period are still subject to access or privacy restrictions under Canadian legislation, Statistics Canada’s National Registration File of 1940 is an alternative to census records that can provide you with some answers. This very valuable source for genealogists and family historians is the result of the compulsory registration of all persons, 16 years of age or older, between 1940 and 1946.

If the person has been dead for more than 20 years, and you can provide proof of death, you can order a search of these Statistics Canada records. Please note that research fees apply.

If you cannot provide a copy of a death certificate, other types of documents indicating the date of death are accepted, such as obituary notices published in newspapers.

The registration included all persons who were 16 years of age or older, except for members of the armed forces and religious orders, or those confined to an institution. If a person died between 1940 and 1946, their questionnaire might have been destroyed. A different form was used for men than was used for women.

The questionnaires provide particulars such as address, age, date and place of birth, general health, and occupation. For immigrants, key details such as the year of arrival in Canada and their parents’ country of birth are given.

The questionnaires include the following details:

name;

address;

age;

date of birth;

marital status;

number of dependents;

place and country of birth of individual and his or her parents;

nationality;

year of entry into Canada (if an immigrant);

racial origin;

languages;

education;

general health;

occupation, employment status, farming or mechanical skills; and

previous military service.

There was a different form for males and females regarding questions about occupation, work history and military service. The records are arranged by electoral district; however, a soundex-format index exists.

Sample of questionnaire for men. Courtesy of Statistics Canada.

Sample of questionnaire for woman. Courtesy of Statistics Canada.

A similar national registration was undertaken during the First World War, in June 1918; however, those records have not survived.

16 thoughts on “The 1940 National Registration File”

My mum ordered her record last year upon my request. It arrived quickly & is a very nice addition to telling her story. It also served as a prompt for her to tell me a few stories that had slipped her mind. Worth the effort to make your request, in my opinion.

I was completely on board for ordering three of these records until I saw the hourly research rate. I realize that it takes time and effort to look for things like this, but that is way too extreme for me. I can’t afford to spend possibly hundreds of dollars for only three people. Disappointing. 😦

Hello –
There is an index. It is held by the Statistics Canada office, they do not put it online as it is restricted under federal privacy legislation because it contains personal information about people who are still alive today.

We are working to digitize the archives of Flin Flon Manitoba. We came accross the registration of a lady who lived in Flin Flon. We have 33,000 items in our archive and this is the first such registration we have found. A small green folder. On the back are two stamps MLCC could you please tell us what these stamps were for?